Peripeteia
by SunnyInOregon
Summary: Dave makes a decision that affects the team, but most of all his wife and daughter.


Dave settles into his favorite seat on the plane, near the back but facing forward, so he can watch the team and not get airsick. The few times he has sat facing the rear of the plane, they inevitably hit turbulence which makes his stomach jump even worse. Yes, he has some superstitions, but he's not going to admit it out loud.

Tara sits in the chair opposite him. He smiles and is about to make a comment when his phone rings. He pulls out it of his pocket already knowing who it is.

"Wifey's calling," Tara teases.

He smiles in acknowledgement and answers the phone. "Hey Kitten."

"We need to talk," Penelope replies in a very serious manner.

He sighs inwardly. He knew this conversation was coming, he just wasn't expecting it so soon. "Can it wait until I get home?"

"No! Because if we wait, you're just going to put me off again."

This time he sighs audibly.

"David! We need to talk about this before it's too late."

"Well, I don't want to talk about it right now," he snaps back.

He sees the team looking in his direction. Tara slides out of her seat and moves over to the rest of the team to give him a small amount of privacy.

"You never want to talk about it," Penelope replies. "And don't snap at me."

"I'm sorry. I'm tired," he says lowly. "And not really in the mood to talk right now."

He hears her huff through the phone.

"You are such a selfish bastard sometimes David Rossi," she growls before the line goes dead.

He sighs again and stares at his phone for a second before putting it away. He glances at the team and takes a deep breath letting it out slowly. He needs to talk, just not to his wife, not yet.

Back at Quantico, Dave slips his bags into his car before heading inside. Emily dismissed the team for the night as it was nearing midnight when the plane landed. Paperwork will be finished in the morning after everyone has rested. The lot was empty except for Dave's and Emily's cars.

He slips through the double glass doors and makes his way to Emily's office. He knocks gently before pushing the door open.

Emily, stands behind her desk as she loads files into her bag, looks up as he enters. "Dave, I thought you'd be halfway home by now."

"We need to talk," he tells her softly.

It's almost two in the morning, when he finally pulls his car into the garage at home. He gets out, grabs his bags and heads into the house. The alarm beeps at him as he enters, he punches in the codes to silence the alarm and reset the system then heads upstairs to find his wife.

Dave peeks into Emma's bedroom. He leans against the door as he assesses the situation. Emma, sound asleep, curls into her Mother who is also sound asleep.

Dave moves off quietly to the master bedroom. He changes out of his work clothes into a set of pajamas and trods back to Emma's room. He was not sleeping alone tonight, he had enough of that. He gently climbs into the bed and snuggles his daughter between him and Penelope.

'Thank God we bought the full-sized bed for Emma,' he thinks.

He reaches over and brushes his fingers across Penelope's cheek. She moans softly before settling back into a deep sleep.

"Hi Daddy," Emma says loudly.

Dave opens his eyes. Emma sits on her knees next to him and grins.

"Good morning, Princess Emma," he says formally. He grabs her, pulling her into a bear hug. She giggles and snuggles into his embrace.

"Momma says the coffee is ready and you need to get up," she says into his chest.

Dave glances at the empty bed. He gives Emma a gentle squeeze. "I'm up. Tell your Momma I'm getting in the shower."

"Okay," she announces as she bounces out of his embrace and off the bed.

"Hey," he calls out stopping her at the doorway. He sits up. "Where's my morning loves?"

She laughs and runs back to him. She gives him a quick kiss then disappears out the door.

Dave smiles as he stands up and stretches. He straightens the bed before heading to the master bath.

Twenty minutes later, Dave showered, shaved, and dressed heads downstairs. The house is empty. He sees his cell phone flashing. A quick check reveals a text from Penelope stating they headed out already and she would see him at work. He sighs, she's still pissed at him.

He grabs a cup of coffee and begins to make toast. If he was going to argue with his wife, he might as well do it on a full stomach.

Dave enters the bullpen which is already in full action. The rest of the team are at their desks working on reports for the last case. Both Matt and Luke are bruised and moving gingerly from their encounter with Louis Chaycon. Dave smiles wryly.

"You boys look like you could use a soak in a hot tub," he says warmly.

"Is that an invitation," Luke asks quickly.

Dave takes in his and Matt's hopeful expressions. He shrugs. "Sure. We should maybe do dinner as well."

"Is this a team event," JJ jumps in.

Dave laughs. "Yes. But let me clear it with my wife."

"I'd wait until she's in a better mood," Tara says. Dave frowns. "She snapped at Anderson when he walked into the break room. Poor guy hadn't said or done anything."

Dave switches his briefcase from one hand to the other. "I guess I should go talk to her first."

"Dave," Emily calls from the catwalk. He turns to her. "Come into my office."

He pauses for a fraction of a second before heading up the ramp and into the Unit Chief's office. "If this is about Penelope, I was just going to go talk to her."

"You haven't talked to her yet?"

"She was asleep with Emma when I got home," he explains. "Then she left before I saw her."

"Well, I need you to make a decision about our talk last night," she says firmly. "This Friday or three months from this Friday?"

"That soon," he questions.

"It's the end of the fiscal year," she says as if that explains everything. "You did say the sooner the better."

He nods. "True. I guess Friday it is."

They share a look; her eyes start to tear. She takes a breath and composes herself. "I have some paperwork for you to sign."

He follows her to the desk and signs the papers where she points.

"Do you want to talk to Penelope first before we tell the team?"

"Do I want to? No. Should I? Oh, definitely."

Emily bites her lip as she tries to hold back a smile. "You married her, Buddy."

He huffs as he heads for the door. He stops and smirks at her. "Best decision of my life."

Dave pops into his office to drop off his briefcase. He doesn't linger, instead heading quickly to Penelope's lair. He raps twice on the door and enters before she calls out.

She looks up at him quickly then turns back to her computers. "Unless this is about a case, I'm too busy to talk."

"Kitten," he says firmly.

She spins around and growls at him. "Don't you "Kitten" me, buster. You had your chance to say your piece last night. Now, you get to wait until I'm ready."

He sighs and leans against the door. "I love you."

She turns away and begins typing on the keyboard. "I love you too. Now go away."

"Fine," he relents. He leaves the room closing the door firmly behind him. He could have just talked to her, however experience told him that she wouldn't be listening. It was better to just let it go for now and face the consequences later. When she was ready to listen, he would be ready to talk.

He stops by the break room and grabs a cup of coffee. Agent Anderson walks cautiously into the room.

"Hey," Dave says to the younger agent. "I apologize for my wife. I heard she yelled at you earlier."

Anderson smiles tightly. "I wish I could say it was the first time, but I'm starting to get used to it."

"She's yelled at you before," Dave asks. "Why haven't you said something?"

Anderson shrugs. "She only does it when she's really stressed. And she always brings me cookies or cupcakes after a day or two. That's worth a few words."

Dave shakes his head. "I'll speak to her – after she brings the cookies."

Anderson grins. "Thanks."

Dave leaves the room and heads to his office where he knows he's about to spend several hours filling out paperwork.

Three hours later, Dave looks up as Emily pops into his office. "We just picked up a new case, you talk to Penelope?"

"She wasn't ready to talk."

"So…"

Dave raises his hands and shrugs. "I guess she's about to find out whether she's ready or not."

He follows Emily into the briefing room where the team has gathered. He briefly catches Penelope's eye before she turns to the tv and presses the remote.

"Hold on, Penelope," Emily says.

Penelope and the team look at Emily who looks at Dave. She raises an eyebrow. Dave nods in return.

"Before we talk about the case, I have an announcement to make," Dave says quietly. All eyes turn to him.

"What's going on," Penelope asks sharply. They make eye contact.

"I'm going to retire," he tells them as he holds her gaze. "This time, for good."

"You said you didn't want to talk about it," Penelope accuses.

He nods. "I meant while I was on the plane. I wanted to talk to you about it."

"When does this go into effect," JJ inquires carefully.

Dave looks at her. She looks sad and nervous. He looks at the rest of the team, the family. "Sooner than any of us would expect, this Friday."

"Why," Spencer asks sounding wounded.

"It's time," Dave says reassuringly. "I'm long past the required age of retirement for the bureau and with what happened between me and Everett Lynch…"

He looks around the room. His eyes landing on Matt and Luke. "If that were me yesterday instead of either of you, I wouldn't have made it to today. I can't physically keep up anymore."

"You're still an asset to this team," Tara sniffles.

Dave's grins. "Not to sound cocky, but I know."

They all laugh.

Emily stares at him, tears forming. "I can't remember what it was like when you weren't here. I'm really going to miss your face."

He grins. "I'm sure you'll be seeing it often. Besides, just because I won't be going on cases with you it doesn't mean you can't call me."

She raises an eyebrow. "Maybe you can consult for us."

"I'd be happy to," he tells her.

"I guess this means we have to find a new Senior Agent," JJ sys mildly.

"Actually," Emily begins. "Dave has already picked his replacement, which has been approved."

"Who," JJ asks.

Dave looks around the room, pausing for effect. "Doctor Spencer Reid."

"Wait, what?" Reid asks.

The rest of the team cheers.

Dave leans over and touches Spencer's arm. "You're going to be a great senior agent."

"You think so," Spencer asks timidly.

Dave shakes his head. "No, I know so."

"I still don't understand why you have to go so soon," Luke interjects.

"I was going to wait until we caught Lynch," Dave begins. "Now – it doesn't matter as much. I know that this team will keep looking for him whether I am here or not. And, I'd like to be around for Emma, and my wife, for as long as I can."

He looks at Penelope, who is still standing. She watches him carefully. He continues. "I've been thinking about this for a while, ever since Emma was born. I thought you were going to be my last love, then you gave me that precious little girl. I want to spend whatever days I have left with you and her."

She smiles gently at him. "You couldn't have picked a better time."

"Yeah," he smiles.

She glances at the others before her eyes fall on him again. "I'm pregnant."


End file.
